Peripheral assembly kit for the workstation of a goods invoicing system

ABSTRACT

A peripheral device kit for the workstation of a goods invoicing system in which a display and input unit can be mounted either on a printer box or on a base box.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates, generally, to a workstation of a goodsinvoicing system and, more specifically, to a peripheral device kit forthe workstation of a goods invoicing system in which a display and inputunit can be mounted either on a printer box or on a base box.

2. Description of the Prior Art

Depending on the application, a workstation of a goods invoicing systemfor shops is subject to various requirements in terms of its equipmentand ease of use. In the following text, the term “workstation” coversboth self-service stations used by a customer as well as equipmentoperated by assistants, such as cash registers, self-service weighingmachines, assistant-operated weighing machines and weighing machines forpacking and the like which may be free-standing or integrated in aso-called checkout point. For example, self-service weighing machines infruit and vegetable sections and assistant-operated weighing machinesare operated by a person who is standing, whereas a checkout assistantin a shop uses a cash register and an associated checkout weighingmachine while sitting down. Up to now, specially designed workstationsfor the various applications have been used, or independent modules,whose dimensions or shapes frequently do not match one another, havebeen installed as desired without any spatial relation to one another.In so doing, ergonomic design principles are often followed relativelyincompletely.

EP-A-0 380 082 discloses a workstation of a goods invoicing system whichincludes a casing with a weighing plate on its top side, a displaydevice, an input device, a goods invoicing computer and a printer forcash register slips and/or price labels. The aforementioned peripheraldevices are accommodated in a single casing and permanently areassociated with one another.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,208,081 describes a data acquisition terminal includes abase casing and a keypad unit. The two can be combined or operatedseparately from one another. The base casing has a recess containingvertical guides and a plug connector, while corresponding guides and amating plug are provided on the keypad unit. If the keypad unit is to beoperated separately from the base casing, an additional cable must beused for their electrical connection as well as a cover for the recesswhich is then open.

EP-A-0 349 997 describes a cash register with a console-type casingincorporating a keypad, a display device and a printer. The displaydevice is accommodated in a casing part which protrudes beyond theconsole surface in the shape of a lens and whose front side forms anobtuse angle with the keypad.

The desire for equipment for individual applications relates to manualinput means and displays, recording devices for machine-readableinformation and physical properties of goods. Alternatively, there is adesire for equipment with various storage and identification media, suchas drives for floppy disks or CD-ROM, connections for electronic,electro-optical or electromechanical bulk storage devices, for examplecomplying with the PCMCIA standard, and readers for magnetic-strip orchip cards, which can be used to identify an operator or a servicetechnician at the workstation. Each equipment variant would require thestructure of an accommodating casing to be changed. Various additionalstructures make a workstation more expensive, however.

An object of the present invention, therefore, is to propose aperipheral device kit for the workstation of a goods invoicing systemwhich can be used to adapt such a workstation to various applicationconditions.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is based on consideration of the fact that,although a self-service workstation, such as a self-service weighingmachine, is used by a large number of people, they use it only from timeto time. In this case, the manual input means and displays have to bearranged at a height where the user can read them, and at the same timeclose to the exit point for printed matter from a label printer so thatthe user will also spot a label which is dispensed. The weighing machineitself should be installed at table height, however. The same applies toassistant-operated weighing machines. On the other hand, a workstationwhich is used while sitting down, such as a cash register, requires themanual input means and displays, a cash register slip printer and acheckout weighing machine to be located in a closely confined viewingand handling area, in order to make it possible to work for severalhours without tiring.

The arrangement of the manual input means and displays in an independentdisplay and input unit, which can be mounted either on a weighingmachine or a printer box, satisfies the requirements of both of theworkstation types mentioned above. This also applies with respect tolabel and cash register slip printers which are constructed in acompletely different way, on account of their different manner ofoperation, but for which it is possible to use a single opening forprinted matter.

The option of equipment either with various keypads or else with acombined display/input device makes it possible not only to design aweighing machine for shops so that it is application-specific, but alsoto adapt it later in a simple manner when this is required by a changeof application or new input devices. For example, the use of a flatscreen with a so-called touch-screen or pen-computer surface or withsoft keys opens up new possibilities for use in the field of bothassistant-operation and self-service.

Thus, the present invention makes it possible to use, in a simplemanner, for example on a weighing machine used as an assistant-operatedweighing machine, a keypad which can be operated quickly, has relativelyfew keys and a perceptible action point, and which can be operatedblind. The cash register keypad, or a second keypad which can beoperated in parallel with the latter and has an identical set of keys,could be arranged upstream of a weighing machine used as a checkoutweighing machine. On the other hand, in a particularly advantageousmanner, a self-service weighing machine can have a touch screenrepresenting the goods on sale by means of pictures. The goods to beweighed are identified simply by touching the appropriate picture on thescreen.

Similar options for selecting the equipment of the workstation arise forstorage means which have to be used only infrequently, such as floppydisk drives for loading programs, CD-ROM drives for operating a PLUstore, chip card readers for registering operators or servicetechnicians, bulk storage devices complying with the PCMCIA standard forelectronic journals, etc.

If the goods invoicing computer is installed in the base box, asproposed as a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and if thedisplay and operating unit is mounted on the base box, the storage meansconnected to the goods invoicing computer can be accommodatedparticularly advantageously in the display and operating unit. On theother hand, a single PLU store is often sufficient in a self-serviceworkstation. A perforation should always be provided in the casing ofthe display and operating unit for installing such devices, andperforations which are not used should be sealed for safety reasons.This requirement is satisfied by covering these perforations with thearea of the keypad surface which is bent downward. At the same time, thedevices are rendered inaccessible to unauthorized persons.

A bearing fixture can be mounted on the base station. This serves foradditionally locating an arrangement of further peripheral devices, suchas a vertical scanner covering the space above the weighing plate fromthe side. The bearing fixture is at the same time used for covering aplug panel on the back of the base box. This enables cables to be guidedfrom this point through hollow bars of the bearing fixture to aperipheral device attached to the latter so that the cables are covered.In addition, it is possible to mount, on the upper end of the bearingfixture, a supporting fixture having a bearing plate protruding beyondthe base station at a distance for either the printer box on its own orwith an input unit mounted. This ensures that the elements of theperipheral device kit are permanently associated with one another inspatial terms.

Additional features and advantages of the present invention aredescribed in, and will be apparent from, the Detailed Description of thePreferred Employments and the Drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a peripheral device kit for the workstation of a goodsinvoicing system in a perspective exploded view.

FIG. 2 shows the base station from FIG. 1 with a display and operatingunit mounted in a perspective front view.

FIG. 3 shows the display and operating unit from FIG. 2 without a keypadin a sectional perspective partial view.

FIG. 4 shows the display and operating unit shown in FIG. 2 with akeypad in two positions in a schematic side view.

FIG. 5 shows a preferred embodiment of a keypad surface supportingdevice in a front view, (a) in the lowered position, and (b) in theraised position.

FIG. 6 shows an alternative embodiment of a keypad surface supportingdevice in a sectional side view, (a) in the lowered position, and (b) inthe raised position.

FIG. 7 shows a latching device for a keypad surface in a schematic sideview.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

FIG. 1 assigns the general designation 10 to a peripheral device kit forthe workstation of a goods invoicing system. It includes a printer box20, a vertical scanner 34, a bearing fixture 36, a supporting fixture38, a base station 100 with a base box 102 and a weighing plate 104 or aweighing plate 104′, in which the window 32 of a bar code reader isinset, and a display and operating unit 109.

A cash register slip printer 22, with an exit point 23 for printedmatter penetrating the front panel, and a label printer 24, with an exitpoint 25 for printed matter penetrating the front panel of the printerbox 20, are installed behind the front panel of the cuboid printer box20. Depending on the application of the workstation, it is also possibleto install only one of the two printers in the printer box 20.

The bearing fixture 36 can be mounted on the rear of the base box 102.It includes two mutually parallel upright bars 37, 37′ which areconnected to one another at the back of the base box 102 by means of across bracket which is not shown. The vertical scanner 34 can beattached between these bars 37, 37′. The supporting fixture 38 can bemounted on the bars 37, 37′. The supporting fixture includes ahorizontal mounting surface 40 for the printer box 20 which can have adisplay and operating unit 109′ mounted on it in a design variant.Second bars 39, 39′ are integrally formed on the underside of themounting surface 40 and can be fitted on top of the bars 37, 37′ of thebearing fixture 36.

FIG. 2 shows the base station 100 in a perspective front view. Thisincludes the base box 102 which has the weighing plate 104 mounted onits top side. A printer 184 with an exit point 186 for printed matterpenetrating the front panel of the base box 102 is installed in the basebox 102. A plug panel which is located to the rear of the base box 102and cannot be seen is closed off by a removable cable cover 108. Asdescribed above, instead of the cable cover 108 on the base box 102, itis also possible to attach the bearing fixture 36 (FIG. 1) whose crossbracket then covers the plug panel. The electrical connection lines forthe printer box 20, the display and operating unit 109′ and the verticalscanner 34 can be guided out of sight through the hollow bars 37, 37′,39, 39′ to the plug panel of the base box 102.

The display and operating unit 109 is mounted on the front of the basebox 102. An information panel 106, turned toward a user on the displayand operating unit 109, is fitted with a snap-fit display device 107. Anopening 182 for printed matter is inset in the information panel 106next to this in alignment with the exit point 186 for printed matterfrom the printer 184.

As shown in FIG. 3, the top side 110 of the display and operating unit109 slopes downward toward the front. The display and operating unit 109encompasses a metal casing 112 which has a chip card reader 116 and afloppy disk drive 118 installed in its vertical front panel 114. The topside of the casing 112 forms a cover plate 120 which has a keypadsurface 122, likewise made of sheet metal, arranged so that it can pivotabove it. This keypad surface has a keypad casing 124 attached to itwhich accommodates a keypad 126, a swipe magnetic-card reader 128 and aservice lock 130. The latter is connected to a switching device which isknown per se and is therefore not shown, and which at a service settingidentifies an employee or commissioned service technician of the shopwith respect to a control device of the workstation which is likewisenot illustrated.

A front area 132 of the keypad surface 122 which protrudes beyond thecasing 112, is bent downward so that it comes to rest in front of thefront panel 114 of the casing 112 and covers it completely. The reararea of the keypad surface 122 is bent downward to form a channel 134extending over its entire width and includes a cross section in the formof a segment of a circle. The center line of the channel 134 coincideswith a pivot axis 136 about which the keypad surface 122 can pivot. Thechannel 134 is held in a gap 138 between the cover plate 120 and a rib140 which is integrally formed on the information panel 106 and whosecontact surface with the keypad surface 122 is matched to the shape ofthe channel 134; i.e., a segment of a circle. In the contact area of thechannel 134, the cover plate 120 may be even. The keypad surface 122 canbe made to pivot about the pivot axis 136 even better, however, if thecover plate 120 is formed into an undulation 142 in this area (FIGS. 3and 4). In this case, the channel 134 lies in a trough of theundulation. In each pivot position, there is electrical contact over alarge surface between the keypad surface 122 and the cover plate 120 sothat the connection of the keypad surface 122 to the ground potential ofthe casing 112 is always guaranteed.

FIG. 4 shows the keypad surface 122 together with the keypad casing 124attached to it in a lowered position, illustrated by solid lines, and araised position, illustrated by dashed lines. In the former position,the front area 132 of the keypad surface 122 covers the front panel 114and thus prevents access to the chip card reader 116 incorporated inthis panel and to the floppy disk drive 118. In addition, FIG. 4 showsthat the pivot axis 136 of the keypad surface 122 is so far in front ofthe information panel 106 that the rear edge 125 of the keypad casing124 does not collide with the information panel 106 or with elementsincorporated in it in any position.

The front area 132 of the lowered keypad surface 122 is located betweenprojections 144 which are integrally formed at the front on the forepart102 (FIG. 2). A screen 146 fitted to the front area 132 (FIG. 4)terminates at the front flush with the projections 144, which results ina device having no projections getting in the way. The screen 146incorporates a lock 148 which also penetrates the front area 132 of thekeypad surface 122 and can be used to lock the keypad surface 122 to thefront panel 114. This can reliably prevent unauthorized access to thechip card reader 116 or the floppy disk drive 118.

FIGS. 4 and 5 illustrate two different exemplary embodiments of asupporting device for the keypad surface 122. This is used, on the onehand, to hold the keypad surface 122 in its raised position so thatdevices incorporated in the front panel 114 of the casing 112 (in theexemplary embodiment shown in FIG. 1, these are the chip card reader 116and the floppy disk drive 118) can be operated comfortably. On the otherhand, the keypad surface 122 is prevented from striking the casing 112hard when it is being lowered, which could lead to a magnetic diskdrive, which is also installed in the casing 112 a being destroyed.

FIG. 5 shows a first exemplary embodiment of a supporting device for thekeypad surface 122 (a) in the lowered position, and (b) in the raisedposition. Integrally formed on the side edges of the front area 132,which is bent away, of the keypad surface 122 there is a support 150projecting obliquely with respect to the side at an angle ofapproximately 10°. When the keypad surface 122 is in the raisedposition, its lower end 152 is supported on the adjacent projection 144.In order to lower the keypad surface 122, the operator has to grasp thesides of the keypad casing 124 attached to it with both hands (shown forone side in FIG. 5b) and press the supports 150 toward one another witha free finger until they are in parallel alignment with the adjacentprojection 144. The keypad surface 122 can then be guided downward.During the lowering, the supports 150 slide along the projections 144with increased frictional resistance caused by the action of an elasticrestoring force from the supports which have been bent to the side. Thisensures that the keypad surface 122 can be changed from the raisedposition to the lowered position (FIG. 5a) without much impact.

FIG. 6 shows a second exemplary embodiment of a supporting device for akeypad surface 122′ (a) in the lowered position, and (b) in the raisedposition. On the side of the keypad surface 122′ which faces the casing112, a bracket 156 is integrally formed to the right and left in thevicinity of the edge of the bend 154 about which the front area 132′ ofthe keypad surface 122′ is bent downward. These brackets hold a supportlever 160 which has two arms, is acted upon by the force of a leg spring158 in the direction of the casing 112, and can be pivoted about aspindle 162 oriented parallel to the pivot axis 136 of the keypadsurface 122′. A first limb 164 of the support lever 160 is supported onthe cover plate 120 of the casing 112, and the second limb 166 is bentdownward. The limbs 164, 166 form an angle of approximately 60°.

In its lowered position (FIG. 6a), the keypad surface 122′ is retainedby a latch 168 (FIG. 7) described further below. When this latch isreleased, the support lever 160 becomes erect under the impelling forceof the leg spring 158. In so doing, it brings the keypad surface 122′into its raised position (FIG. 6b) without it having to be lifted byhand. In this position, the second limb 166 is supported on the frontarea 132′ of the keypad surface 122′ and thus limits the pivoting areaof the support lever 160. In order to lower it, the keypad surface 122′is pressed downward manually. In this case, the lower end of the firstlimb 164 of the support lever slides along the cover plate 120 andtensions the leg spring 158 at the same time. As in the exemplaryembodiment of the support device shown in FIG. 5, this arrangement alsoensures that the keypad surface 122′ can be changed from the raised tothe lowered position (FIG. 6a) without much impact. Furthermore, it hasthe advantage of being able to be operated using one hand.

FIG. 7 shows the latch 168 for the keypad surface 122′ in a sectionalside view. On the side of the keypad surface 122′ which faces the casing112, it includes a slide 170 which can slide longitudinally and which isaligned parallel to the keypad surface. The slide 170 penetrates thefront area 132′ of the keypad surface 122′ where it is provided with ahandgrip 174. On the inside of the front area 132′, a tongue 176 whichpoints downward is integrally formed on the slide 170 wherein ahook-shaped latching projection 178 is formed on the lower end of saidtongue. In its latching position, this latching projection engages alatching recess 180 in the front panel 114 of the casing 112. The slide170 is acted upon by an actuating force of a tension spring 172 exertedin the direction of the casing 112. For unlatching, the slide 170 ismoved in the direction of the arrow A. The latching projection 178disengages from the latching recess 180 and the keypad surface can swingupward.

The display and operating unit 109′ shown at the top of FIG. 1 is not asecond display and operating unit associated with the peripheral devicekit 10. Instead, it is the same display and operating unit as describedpreviously, the keypad surface 122 being equipped with a flat screen 26and a keypad 30 with a small number of keys. The screen can be designedas a touch screen. However, it can also have a bar 28 havinguser-programmable keys, so-called soft keys, arranged at its edge, asshown in FIG. 1. In this equipment variant, the display device 107 isreplaced by a further, snap-fit opening 188 for printed matter which isaligned with the exit point 25 for printed matter from the label printer24.

Likewise, the base station 100′ illustrated in FIG. 1 is not a secondbase station associated with the peripheral device kit 10. Instead, thisis simply intended to show an equipment variant of the base station 100with a weighing plate 104 incorporating the window 32 of a bar codereader. The indices on the reference numerals merely serve to make thedescription more comprehensible.

Although the present invention has been described with reference tospecific embodiments, those of skill in the art will recognize thatchanges may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scopeof the invention as set forth in the hereafter appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A workstation of a goods invoicing system, comprising: a goods invoicing computer; a printer box having an exit point for printed matter; a base box having a weighing plate mounted on a top side of the base box and having an exit point for printed matter; a printer installed in one of the printer box and the base box, the printer producing cash register slips and price labels; a display and operating unit including a display device and an input device and an opening for printed matter, the display and operating unit further including a rear panel having dimensions equal to front face dimensions of both the printer box and the base box, the display and operating unit mounted on the printer box when the printer is installed in the printer box wherein the opening is aligned with the exit point of the printer box, the display and operating unit mounted on the base box when the printer is installed in the base box wherein the opening is aligned with the exit point of the base box; and a supporting fixture mounted on a bearing fixture fitted to a rear side of the base box, the printer box and the display and operating unit fitted to the supporting fixture when the printer is installed in the printer box.
 2. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the display and operating unit includes first and second limbs, the first limb having a console-type keypad surface for at least one keypad, the second limb protruding beyond a rear edge of the at least one keypad and having a display device and/or at least one opening for printed matter.
 3. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 2, wherein the display and operating unit further includes a casing located beneath the keypad surface, the casing having a vertical front panel with at least one chip card reader and/or pass reader and/or floppy disk drive and/or optical storage media drive and/or a card holder complying with the PCMCIA standard, a front area of the keypad surface being bent downward, the keypad surface being mounted on the display and operating unit wherein it may pivot about a pivot axis running at and parallel to a rear edge of the keypad surface between a lowered position in which a front area of the keypad surface is engaged over the vertical front panel and a raised position in which the front area is disengaged.
 4. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the front area of the keypad surface is positioned between projections when the keypad surface is in the lowered position, the projections defining respective side edges of the front panel.
 5. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 4, wherein, at least at one side edge of the front area, a support is arranged which runs parallel to the adjacent projection when the keypad surface is in the lowered position and which, when the keypad surface is in the raised position, extends laterally away from the front area under action of an elastic spring force.
 6. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 3, wherein at least one support lever which is acted upon by the force of a spring in a direction of the casing, may be pivoted about a spindle oriented parallel to the pivot axis of the keypad surface, the support lever being connected to the underside of the keypad surface and having a limb supported on the cover plate of the casing.
 7. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the keypad surface may be latched to the casing when the keypad surface is in the lowered position.
 8. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the pivot axis of the keypad surface is arranged at a set distance from the information panel at a rear edge of a keypad casing protruding beyond the keypad surface does not collide with the information panel or a display device incorporated therein or any opening for printed matter incorporated therein when the keypad surface is in the raised position.
 9. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 8, wherein the keypad surface is formed from sheet metal and is bent around the pivot axis to form a channel in the shape of a segment of a circle, the channel pivotable in a gap formed between the cover plate of the case and a rib integrally formed on a floor part of the display and operating unit.
 10. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the goods invoicing computer is installed in the base box.
 11. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the weighing plate includes an integrated scanner window for a bar code reader.
 12. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 1, wherein a plug panel at the rear side of the base box is covered by a removable cable cover.
 13. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the bearing fixture covers a plug panel at the rear side of the base box.
 14. A workstation of a goods invoicing system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a vertical scanner mounted on the bearing fixture, the vertical scanner having a main scanning direction which includes an area lying above the base box. 